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Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan
The Chief Medical Director (CMD), University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Prof Jesse Abiodun Otegbayo, has tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and has gone into quarantine.
Also testing positive for the virus are the Provost, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Prof Olubunmi Olopade-Olaopa, and the Deputy Provost, Prof Obafunke Denloye.
Otegbayo and Olopade-Olaopa made the disclosure in separate statements they issued personally Sunday morning. The statements comes a few days after Otegbayo announced that some doctors in the teaching hospital have been placed on self-isolation after they were confirmed to have had contact with some persons that had tested positive for the coronavirus.
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According to the UCH CMD, Otegbayo, on the Facebook wall of the teaching hospital: “On Monday 23rd March, we commenced a 12-man quarterly board meeting, which was meant to last five days in the hospital. We observed social distancing and other precautionary measures for COVID-19 as much as possible.
“However, on Wednesday morning, one of us presented with what appeared to be symptoms of COVID-19. His samples were immediately taken for test and the meeting called off.
“His results returned positive on Friday morning and every participant (including me) immediately went into self-isolation, while our samples were also taken for the test.
“Unfortunately, my result returned positive on Saturday afternoon and I remain in isolation as I am not symptomatic. All staff who have been in contact with me and other participants during this period have been advised to immediately proceed on self-isolation, pending the time they get tested.
“COVID-19 is spreading faster than we think and I enjoin everyone to take precautions. If one person has it, then a gathering of two becomes dangerous. Stay at home, avoid unnecessary outing and stay safe.”
The Provost, College of Medicine, UI, Olapade-Olaopa, also posted a message on a WhatsApp group message on Sunday morning, saying: “Dear colleagues, I wish to inform you that the deputy provost and I tested positive for the COVID-19, following the tests done on Friday.
“Although we are both asymptomatic, we have gone into self-isolation for the 14 days while our contacts are being observed closely to determine if they should also be tested.”
It was gathered that the trio is among the four new cases of COVID-19 in Oyo State announced on Saturday night by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), thereby bringing the number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the state as at March 28 to seven, making it the state with the third-highest number of confirmed cases in the country after Lagos with 59 cases and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) with 16 cases on Saturday night.
